Coin control



March 4, 1941. w. A. TRATscH ETAL v coIN CONTROL Filed July 25, 1938 willi/lll] d, Wb'mm/ Paf/zel" INVENTORS 74E/1 ATTO Patented Mar. 4, 1941 UNITEDy STATES COIN CONTROL Walter A. Tratsch and William Patzer,

Chicago, Ill.

Application July 25, 1938, Serial No. 221,078

6` Claims.

This invention pertains to check-controlled apparatus and has as a principal object the provision of means for permitting the deposit of more than one-coin in such an apparatus without danger of the coins being collectedbefore the apparatus can be released for its second operation.

Viewed from another aspect, it is an object of the invention to provide in combination with a coin testing device and operating mechanism controlled thereby, means actuated by the control mechanism for preventing movement of a second coin, and such coins as may be aligned serially behind the same, into operative position to release the control until the latter has been fully restored .to an initial position.

Another object is the provision of a coin testing device having an acceptance opening into which proper coins are delivered, manually actuated control means including a driven member, andl coin-operated mechanism disposed adjacent the aforesaid acceptance opening and operated by a proper coin to free the control means for actuation, together with a restraining member operatively connected with the driven member and having a portion projected into the coin testing device in advance `of the acceptance opening and in a .position to engage a second coin therein aligned. behind a rst vcoin which is in position vto release the control mechanism so that the second coin and all coins behind it will be restrained against movement toward and into operative engagement with the coin .control means until the latter has been restored to an initial condition.

With the foregoing and other objects and novel 'aspects of the invention ,in view, a preferred embodiment of the `invention consists .in the form and -arrangement of parts hereinafter described lin view of the annexed drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary vertical section of the lower portion of a coin tester and control mech- 'an'ism cooperable therewith;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary rear elevation of the "coin-actuated dog or locking mechanism forming part of the control mechanism of Fig. 1, as seen in the'direction of V1ine`2-2 of the latter;

Fig. 3 `is a fragmentary elevational view of the acceptance opening in the lower part of the coin chute of Fig. 1, Yas viewed inthe direction of line A3--3 thereof.; While Fig. 4 Ais an .edgewise eleva-tional view vof the .check-.operated apparatus, as seen in the direc- 'While l.the ,present invention is of lgeneral application in check-controlled apparatus, we have chosen a particular form of such apparatus for purposes of illustration and one which is described in detail in our copending U. S. application, Serial No. 193,681, for improvements in a Vending machine, said vending machine including a coin testing or check-operated device, such as shown in our copending U. S. application, Serial No. 85,879.

A coin testing device suitable for cooperation with the present invention and of a type described in our last-mentioned copending application, is shown in part in Fig. 2 herein, and is in the form of a substantially ilat, rectangular body I0 having a descending coin passage II therein (Fig. 3) which terminates above two spaced apart discharge openings I2 and I3 at the bottom edge of the chute body. 'I'he discharge opening I 2 constitutes an acceptance opening into which proper and acceptable coin y elements move after negotiating the various testing and selecting means arranged in the Yupper portions of the device, the remaining discharge opening I3 constituting a reject opening into which spurious and improper coin elements move by virtue of the various testing means.

Cooperable with the Vcoin testing means is a coin-freed apparatus including a .control mechanism, such as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 4, wherein there is provided a manually operated handle or control member I5 mounted at one end of a shaft I6 extending through `the panel I'I of the vending machine and through the chute body Il) v(out of the path of coinelements moving in the latter) and terminating in driving connection with a cam member I8 (Fig. 2) rotatable therewith. The cam I8 is normally latched against movement by means such as the dog I9 pivoted as at 20 on the chute body and having a latch tooth 2| disposed lto be engaged by a `projection 2-2 on the cam disc when the latter is vturned without deposit of a coin in the machine. The dog I9 is normally urged in an anticlockwise direction ina direction out of latching position relative -to the cam I8 by means, such as the spring 23.

Coin-controlled means normally urging the dog into latching position includes a slide 25 arranged for horizontal sliding movement on pin means 26 at the lower edge of the chute body I0 opposite the acceptance opening I2, the slide having a pair of laterally offset ngers 21 and 2'I arranged to project into the acceptance opening so that a l.properly accepted coin element ,A .(Fig. 3) will Klodge edgewise against the lingers 21 and 21' on (Fig. 2) by a spring 29, which is stronger than spring 23, so as to cause the inner end portion of the slide to bear against a cam nose 30 on the lower end of the dog I9 thereby to pivot the latter in a clockwise direction so as to dispose the latching tooth 2| in position for engagement by the projection 22 on the cam I8 whereby to prevent effective rotation of the latter in an anticlockwise direction.

The arrangement and construction of the slide 25 is such that if there is no coin A positioned as in Fig. 3 between the lingers 21 and the anvil 28, the slide 25 will shift toward the left (Fig. 2) under urgence of its spring 29 to move the dog `into latching position. The cam I8 is provided with a pin 35 (Figs. land 2) which engageswith an arcuate nose portion 38 on the upper end of the dog I9 when the control handle I 5, and hence the cam I8, are turned to their starting position as viewed in Fig. 2 (clockwise). As a result, the dogr I9 bears against the slide 25 and shifts the latter slightly toward the right so that the coin A can drop freely into position between the ngers 21 and anvil 28.

When a proper coin A is positioned as aforesaid and the control mechanism including the cam I8 is turned by manipulation of the handle f5 in an anticlockwise direction (Fig. 2), the dog I9 is prevented from moving into latching position because the slide 25 cannot shift to the left to pivot the dog into such position, since the coin A by engagement with the fingers 21 blocks such movement of the slide, and therefore the control mechanism including the cam I8 is freed for a complete effective movement in an anticlockwise direction.

Driven means in the form of a vertical shift rod 40 (Figs. 2 and 4) is mounted on one of the vertical edges of the chute body I0 by headed pin means 4I, an enlarged upper end portion of this shiftrod being provided with an offset cam porion 42 engageable with the roller means 43 of a scavenging device for the coin tester. If desired, the means 49 may actuate any check-controlled apparatus in addition to the scavenging means, but in the present illustrative embodiment, as particularly described in our first-mentioned copending application, there is a vending mechanism also arranged to be actuated when the dog mechanism is released and which is connected to the shaft I6 through the agency of a clutch member 44 (Fig. l), the vending mechanism not being shown herein.

Reciprocation of the driven means 49 is accomplished through the agency of an offset cam bar 45 (Fig. 2) havingan S-shaped cam track 48 along one lower edge for engagement with roller means 41 on the cam member I8, the bar 45 having a portion turned across the vertical edge on which the shift rod 40 is mounted, and connected with the latter so that as the cam I8 oscillates,

the rod 49 will move up and down due to the shape of the cam track 46 and movements of the roller 41 therein, there being spring means (not shown) associated with the roller means to effect lowering movement of the shift rod into normal position.

It will be observed in the foregoing description of loperation of the dog I9 and slide 25 that the slide is positioned initially (Fig. 2) so that the coin A will positively seat between the fingers 21 and the anvil 28, the lowermost finger 21 being slightly offset toward the anvil to effect seating of the coin. However, when the handle is turned in the direction of releasing movement, the slide 25 isA freed for movement by its spring 29 so that the coin A is substantially clamped between the ngers and the anvil. In order to release the coin A, there is provided an upwardly projecting finger 59 on the coin slide 25 and so positioned as to be engaged by the lateral pin 35 carried on the disc I8, this pin engaging the projection 50 when the cam member I8 has been turned toward its limit in the direction of effective movement thereof, that is, when the vending or other controlled mechanism is actuated, with the result that the slide 25 is shifted toward the right (Fig. 2), thus releasing the coin A for gravitating movement into a suitable receptacle.

An'examination of Fig. 3 will disclose a second coin B which, it may be assumed, has. been deposited immediately after the first coin A so that the coin B, having been accepted by the testing device, rests just above the coin A in position to move into the acceptance opening as soon as the passage is no longer blocked by the coin A. l

It frequently happens that when the-control I5 is turned to actuate the vending mechanism and the coin A is released as aforesaid, the slide 25 is held open long enough so thatthe second coin B follows the rst coin A before the fingers 21v have time rto return to locking position, the customer thereby losing his second coin. i y

An important feature of the present invention is the provision of means of general application but especially suited to 'cooperation with the foregoing type of vending mechanism and check-operated means vfor automatically restraining the second coin B andany coins following thereafter for movement intothe acceptance opening before the means 21 has had time to return to coin blocking position.

Such a means is disclosed in Fig.r3 in the form of a pivoted member 52 pivotally mounted on means 53 in the lower section of the -coin chute with one of its end portions 54 extending outwardly of the chute, and the opposite end portion being offsetV and shaped in the manner of a hook to provide a cam nose 55 positioned in spaced relation to the anvil 28.

The pivoted member 52 is arranged to oscillate aboutfthe point 53 yso as to project the cam nose 55 thereof into and out of blocking position relative to the anvil 28 for the purpose of restraining downward movement of'second coin elements, such as the coin B. The downward movement of the restraining member 52 is limited by that portion of the actuating shaft I 6 which extends through the chute, the member 52 being shaped in the manner illustrated in part to fit around this shaft portion.

Means yieldingly .urging the restraining arm 52 into effective position, includes a spring 58 anchored at one end 51 on suitable lug means 58 attached to the shift rod 40 near its lower end, the opposite end of the spring being attached as at 59 to the outermost end portion of the end 54 of thepivoted member.

Thus, the cam nose 55 of the vpivoted restraining arm is projected into lowered dotted-line position, and so long as the` shift rod 49 remains elevated by actuation of the control I5 and associated mechanism, the member 52 will be pivoted by spring 56 to block the movement of coin elements B toward the acceptance opening, such coins being releasedfas soon as 'the 'retnrn'xnovement of the control and particiua'rly the cam member I8 is begun to restore fthe control to lan initial position, since the slide 25 begins its movement back vto normal position simultaneously with the return movement of the cam means l`8 so that the coin elements B are permitted to move at 'once into effective 'position as soon as shift rod 40 descends to rock the 'restraining member 52 out of the way.

A feature of the rest-raining means 52 is the curved 'offset or hooked shape r'and disposition of the -cam nose 55, as shown, by means of which the second coin elements B are cammed b-ackwardly away from the coin element A to rest in the dotted-line position occupied by coin B. In this Way, the actual blocking portion 55 of the restraining member may be moved into positive blocking position without danger of jamming against the restrained coin and with no possibility whatever of the coins working past the restraining member, particularly at the instant the latter is moved into effective position. Stated in other terms, the cam nose 55 is shaped and moved so that it may have positive engagement with the edge of the coin B without danger of jamming by wedging the coin B against the anvil.

While we have described the preferred embodiment of our invention in detail for purposes of illustration, it will be apparent that the objects and advantages thereof may be obtained by other arrangements and forms of construction, and we therefore do not intend that the invention shall be limited to the precise forms and arrangements shown herein but shall include broadly all equivalent forms and arrangements fairly coming within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. In a device of the class described, means providing a descending coin passage having an acceptance discharge opening, coin-controlled mechanism operatively associated with said means and including a coin-engaging slide arranged for movement into and out of a normal position adjacent said acceptance opening for operative engagement with coin elements gravitating into said opening whereby tofree said mechanism for effective operation, said coin elements being held at said acceptance opening by said slide and being released by movement of said slide out of said normal position when said mechanism is effectively operated, and means for preventing movemenit of coin elements into operative engagement with said coin slide while the latter is out of said normal position, said means including an arm pivotally mounted in said chute and having driving connection with said coin-controlled mechanism for pivotal movement by the latter when the same is effectively operaited as aforesaid to project a portion of said pivoted member linto blocking position above said coin slide to block gravitating movement of coin elements into said acceptance opening and into engagement with said slide.

2. In a device of the class described, means providing a descending coin passage having an acceptance discharge opening, coin-freed operating mechanism arranged -to receive vand engage coin elements delivered to said acceptance opening to free said coin-freed mechanism for effective operation, a pivoted restraining arm mounted for movement into and out of blocking position relative to said acceptance ope-ning,

and. means operatively associated with said restraining arm and operable by said coin-freed mechanism for pivoting saidarm from a normal ineffective position into blocking position when said coin-freed mechanism-is effectively operated.

3. In a device of the class described, means providing a descending coin passage having an acceptance discharge opening, coin-freed operating mechanism arranged to receive and engage coin elements delivered to said acceptance opening to free said coin-freed mechanism for eiective operation, a pivoted restraining arm mount- -ed for movement into and out of blocking position relative to said acceptance opening, and means operatively connected with said restraining arm and operable by said coin-freed mechanism for pivoting said arm from a normal ineffective position into blocking position when said coin-freed mechanism is effectively operated, said restraining arm having a coin-engaging portion arranged to effect movement of a coin away from said acceptance opening, whereby said coin-engaging portion may be moved into movementrestraining engagement with said coin element while at the same time advancing into blocking position.

4. In a device -of the class described includ-ing coin-freed control means, means providing a descending coin passage having an acceptance discharge opening, an anvil member at one side of said opening, a coin-engaging member opposite said anvil and arranged for movement'l into and out of a normal position to engage and hold a coin at said opening for operation of said coinfreed con-trol means, means actuated by said control means for moving said coin-engaging member away from said anvil to release a coin held thereby, and a restraining member mounted for 'b-ack and forth movement at a point above said anvil and acceptance opening and having a coin-engaging portion opposite the anvil, said restraining member being normally positioned away from said anvi1 to permit passage of a coin element therepast to said acceptance opening, said restraining member having operative connection with said coin-freed control means for movement by effective operation of the latter to dispose the coin-engaging portion thereof into a position opposite said anvil to block movement of coin elements t-oward said acceptance opening and coin-engaging member.

5. In a device of the class described in combination, coin-freed control means, means providing a descending coin passage having an acceptance discharge'opening, an anvil member at one side of said opening, a ycoin-engaging member opposite said anvil and arranged for movement into and out 0f a normal position t0 engage and hold a coin at said opening for operation of said coin-freedcontrol means, means actuated by said control means for moving said coin-engaging member away from said anvil to release a coin held thereby, and a restraining member mounted for back and forth movement at a point above said anvil and acceptance opening and having a coin-engaging portion opposite the anvil, said restraining member being normally positioned away from said anvil to permit passage of a coin element therepast to said acceptance opening, said restraining member having operative connection with -said coin-freed control means for movement by effective operation of the latter to dispose the coin-engaging portion thereof into a position opposite said anvil to block movement of coin elements toward said acceptance opening and coin-engaging member, said coin-engaging portion of the restraining member being shaped and disposed to cam a coin element engaged thereby away from said acceptance opening during movement of the restraining member into blocking position.

6. A coin chute having an acceptance discharge opening to which certain coin elements gravitate, a pivoted restraining member in said chute and pivotable from a normal position inrto block-ing position with respect to said acceptance opening to block movement of coin elements to- Ward the latter, and coin-freed mechanism including a coin-engaging member arranged at said acceptance opening ,-to engage and hold `a coin element thereat to free said mechanism for effeo-tive operation, said coin-freed mechanism being arranged when effectively operated to -release a coin element held by said coin-engaging member, and means actuated by said coin-freed mechanism when the same is eiectively operated and connected to said restraining member by yieldable means to pivot said restraining member into blocking position, said restraining member being returned to normal non-blocking position vWhen said coin-engaging member is restored to coin-engaging position.

WILLIAM PATZER. 

